Wednesday, April 16, 2014

The Teacher Effect


If you ever had a Wharton County Junior College instructor who made a difference in your life, now’s the time to publicly say thanks.
A new program – entitled “The Teacher Effect” – will provide alumni and current students with the opportunity to highlight the role a particular instructor played in their life. The purpose is to draw attention to those dedicated educators who oftentimes get overlooked, said Amanda Heard, the college’s Internet Marketing Coordinator and overseer of the project.
“Everybody had at least one teacher that had some kind of impact on them and we want to hear those stories,” Heard said. “There are so many unsung heroes out there. This is the acknowledgment teachers deserve but so seldom get.”
Students will share their stories by filling out an online form. The forms are currently posted on the college’s website – www.wcjc.edu – and a link is also provided on the WCJC Facebook page. Stories can also be emailed to Heard at: hearda@wcjc.edu
The stories must focus on a past or present WCJC instructor who taught at one of the college’s four campuses: Wharton, Bay City, Sugar Land or Richmond. The Office of Marketing and Communications will review submissions and determine which instructors will be featured.
The program began on March 31 and will run for the next few weeks. Heard is hoping for great participation. She believes it’s important to recognize the life-changing impact teachers can have. Her personal experience with an instructor who was particularly encouraging was the driving force behind “The Teacher Effect” concept.
“There’s some gems out there who deserve recognition,” she said. “It’s time for us to highlight those heroes among us.”
She further noted that WCJC instructors continue to garner a positive impact on the surrounding community. The college held its first classes in 1946.
“We are really proud of the faculty we have at the college. Many of our instructors have worked here for more than 20 years, which means a lot of lives have been positively touched,” Heard said. “There are instructors here who have made a huge difference, not just with one student but with generations throughout our community.”

Friday, October 18, 2013

WCJC Announces Winter Mini-Term and Spring 2014 Registration

Wharton CountyJunior College is registering for the Winter Mini-Term and the Spring 2014 Semester beginning November 1. Students may register on campus or on the web through December 13 for the Winter Mini-Term. Students may register through January 20 online for the Spring 2014 Semester and should visit the college’s website for on-campus registration dates.


Winter Mini-Term classes begin December 16, 2013 and Spring classes begin January 21, 2014.
Wharton County Junior College offers an associate in arts degree for those intending to transfer to a four-year institution, associate of arts in teaching degree, associate in applied science degrees, and certificate programs. Distance education courses are available through the web, and interactive television.
Students new to WCJC are encouraged to visit the college’s website at wcjc.edu to learn more about New Student Orientation sessions.

For more information about programs or registration, call 800.561.9252 or 979.532.4560 for the Wharton campus, 281.243.8447 for the Sugar Land campus, or 281.239.1500 for the WCJC Richmond Campus. The college also offers classes at the Bay City campus.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

New Board Member

An appreciation reception to recognize WCJC Trustee Phyllip Stephenson for sixteen years of service was held Jan. 3 at the Hutchins Memorial Center. Amy Rod, of El Campo, was nominated by Stephenson to replace him in board position 4. The board unanimously voted to accept the nomination and Rod took the oath of office. Stephenson recently was elected as a member of the Texas House of Representatives. He resigned as a member of the WCJC Board of Trustees in order to take office for his newly elected position.

Friday, September 7, 2012

WCJC Receives National Recognition


Wharton County Junior College has received the annual Merit Award from the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA) for achieving a 90% or higher graduate pass rate on the Certified Surgical Technologist (CST) examination for cycle of August 1, 2011 through July 31, 2012. Graduates obtaining national certification as a CST demonstrate by examination understanding of the basic competencies for safe patient care on the operating room. The CST is widely recognized in the health care community as the foremost credential for surgical technologists in the nation. The CST is required for employment within many local, state and national health care organizations.

According to NBSTSA Chief Executive Officer Ron Kruzel, the NBSTSA has a 40 year history in CST examination development. The CST examination is the only fully accredited examination by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) for surgical technologists in the nation. NCCA accreditation assures that the CST examination meets stringent standards of examination development and administration. Certification as a surgical technologist exhibits professional pride, the desire to be recognized for mastery of surgical competencies, and most importantly an ongoing commitment to quality patient care.
There are criteria that a surgical technologist must meet in order to qualify to take the CST examination. For an application and information about the CST examination or about the NBSTSA, please go to the NBSTSA website at www.nbstsa.org, email cara@nbstsa.org or call 1-800-707-0057.

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

New Educational Benefits Now Available For Veterans At WCJC



Recent legislation now provides older, unemployed veterans with 12 months of educational assistance when they enroll in a community college program that trains for a high demand career. Because there is a limit to the number of participants, Wharton County Junior College is urging qualified veterans to apply now.

Richard Hyde, the college’s director of financial aid, said the Veterans Retraining Assistance Program (VRAP) is available to qualified, unemployed veterans who are at least 35 but not yet 60 years old, and who are not eligible for other VA education benefit programs. Details are available at benefits.va.gov/vow.

Each semester WCJC serves hundreds of military veterans and their children, thanks to the availability of educational assistance benefits. Some of the most popular programs include the Post-9/11 GI Bill, also known as Chapter 33, and Texas Senate Bill 639, also called the Hazlewood Exemption. Information about these programs may be found at gibill.va.gov and collegeforalltexans.com.

In addition, WCJC may grant credit for military training or coursework, if the material covered in the military school is comparable to the material taught in the WCJC course. Individuals who wish to have their military transcript evaluated for possible credit must contact the Registrar’s Office to initiate the review process. WCJC department heads or division chairs will make the final determination on whether credit may be granted and for which course or courses. For additional information, please visit wcjc.edu and type “military credit” into the search box, or call the Admissions and Registration office at 800.561.9252, ext. 6303.

Thursday, August 9, 2012

WCJC Adds Degree Program in Computer Simulation and Game Development


In response to student and employer demand, Wharton County Junior College is now offering an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree in Computer Simulation and Game Development. The two-year program will prepare students for entry-level employment in the field of gaming and simulation in industries such as healthcare, law enforcement, military, advertising and others.


“This program will focus on the programming side of computer simulation and game development, rather than design, because our industry advisers say there are more job opportunities in this area,” said Donna Schilling, head of the WCJC Computer Science Department.

WCJC developed the new program in partnership with the University of Houston-Victoria and the University of Houston. Graduates of the WCJC program can easily transfer to UHV, taking coursework at the UH Sugar Land campus, to complete a bachelor’s degree in digital gaming and simulation. The University of Houston is developing a graduate level program in gaming and simulation.

Students are often surprised to find that advanced math skills are required to be successful in computer simulation and game design.

“Making moving objects look realistic requires a lot of trigonometry and physics,” said Schilling, noting that these two courses are among WCJC’s required core courses for the AAS degree.

This fall, along with general education courses, students will have the opportunity to enroll in the Introduction to Game Design and Development class (GAME 1303) at WCJC’s Sugar Land campus. This course covers topics such as storytelling, game story theory, building characters, the steps of a game concept and careers in the gaming industry.

The new computer simulation and gaming program will expose students to a broad range of simulated training environments. Software programs they will use include Adobe® Creative Suite® and Autodesk® Entertainment Creation Suite.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) does not yet collect career data specifically for software programmers in the video game industry. However, the BLS does report the 2010 median annual salary for computer programmers as $71,380 and for animators as $58,510. In addition, a conference of game developers found the average earnings in 1998 for game programmers with more than one year of experience was $59,127.

For more information about the WCJC Computer Simulation and Game Development degree program, visit wcjc.edu or call the computer science department at 800.561.9252, ext. 6394.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Upcoming Board Election



The election of three seats on the Wharton County Junior College Board of Trustees will be held on May 12, and WCJC district residents can cast their ballots through early voting beginning April 30.  Early voting locations, dates and times are as follows:


Wharton Civic Center

Duncan Auditorium
1924 N. Fulton
Wharton
April 30, 2012 – May 4, 2012
8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
May 7 – 8, 2012
7 a.m. – 7 p.m.

El Campo EMS Bldg.
200 N. Merchant
El Campo
April 30 – May 4, 2012
8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
May 7-8, 2012
7 a.m. – 7 p.m.

East Bernard Library
746 Clubside Dr.
East Bernard
April 30 – May 4, 2012
8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
May 7-8, 2012
7 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Old Needville Firehouse
3115 Richmond St.
April 30 – May 4, 2012
10 a.m. – 7 p.m.
May 7-8, 2012
7 a.m. – 7 p.m.


Election Day voting on May 12, 2012 will include the above listed locations and the Glen Flora Fire Station located at 127 Bridge Ave. in Glen Flora. Election Day voting will be held from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at all locations.